2. Reflections on
the Lectionary 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 – Are We “New Creations in
Christ”?

This passage includes the well-known verse:
Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has
passed away, behold, the new has come (2 Cor 5:17). What does it mean
to be a new creation?

I think this passage teaches that those
who are “in Christ” have a new outlook on life, which manifests itself
in new behaviors and new choices. Jesus exemplified love, compassion,
and mercy. There are people who claim to be “saved” or “in Christ,”
but if they manifest the same hardness of heart they had before they
were “saved,” I think they have deceived themselves. While we all
“fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), those who are new
creations in Christ continuously strive to emulate Jesus’ attitude
toward God’s creation.

Are those who contribute to the abuses
of animal agribusiness saved? I don’t know – some people may not have
access to nutritious non-animal foods. For those who do have a choice
and who know (or have no excuse for not knowing) about the cruelties
of modern animal agribusiness, they are only “in Christ” to the degree
that they try to use Jesus as a model for their choices.

Next
week, I will reflect on the last part of this reading: For our sake he
made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God.

There have been readers, even in
ancient times, who ridiculed the book of Jonah because they couldn't
believe Jonah survived three days in the fish's belly. But perhaps the
laugh was on them. When read as a parable, the book uncovers
some of the riches of God's love, not only for human animals, but also
for the furred and feathered ones with whom we are all bound together.
See the Editor's Corner essay, "Jonah, the Fish Story, 'and Also Many
Animals.'"

In one of the Unset Gems, author Victor Hugo tells us
why animals are in no risk of going to hell.

Our Pioneer, Maria
Rosa Martinez of Argentina, tells in an interview about becoming a
vegetarian in her teens, how her family and friends responded, and how
a powerful short video convinced her to become a vegan. (Ms.
Martinez is the translator into Spanish of Quaker Animal Kinship's
booklet "Are Animals Our Neighbors?" Both English and Spanish
copies are available for distribution; just ask.)

A Book Review by
Robert Ellwood looks at A Faith Embracing All Creatures, an anthology
of knowledgeable and sensitive essays on various aspects of the
Christian faith having to do with animals. Several of them,
citing Bible passages frequently quoted by those who mean to challenge
a compassionate veganism, show that a very different interpretation is
called for.

To read these and more, see
http://www.vegetarianfriends.net/issue95.html

We welcome
comments on anything in this issue as well as suggestions and
submissions for the next one.